4.23.2015

The Best Advice on Earth Day and Every Day is to Divest in Every Aspect of Capitalism


Yesterday another Earth Day came and went and what Pogo said on the 1st Earth Day: "We have met the enemy and he is us." becomes more true and more ignored with each iteration. Humans are, as BeezleyBillyBub accurate details in 'Collapse Data Cheat Sheet' - an impressive curriculum vitae of a self-exterminating species - responsible for the disease. Beazley says: "You can blame capitalism, big banks and monstrous corporate conspiracies for the near term collapse of life on earth, but these things could not exist without us..."

Most of us, but not all, some choose to live a life of non-compliance, to fly under the radar, to use their energy growing healthy food and healthy children who understand that real wealth isn’t measured in money.

A stake in capitalism
Unfortunately in the past decades many folks started to believe they had a stake in capitalism. They ‘invested’ in mutual funds, they accepted the logic of defined contribution pension plans, they used their credit cards to buy needless crap again and again because they deserved it. Now they must turn their eyes and their minds away from the grotesque obscenities of consumer capitalism lest they are forced to admit what Pogo, Beazley and many others who have cast aside their culturally installed blinkers clearly see.

Capitalist vampires live on the blood of the compliant. There are other ways to live, better ways, but consumers fear their imaginary wealth would disappear if vampire capitalism were to crumble and they’d be forced to do the hard work it takes to live a truly sustainable life.

The only viable divestment strategy on Earth Day, and every day, is to divest in every aspect of capitalism, to refuse to comply. Turn on, tune in and drop out is still the best advice.